Buying a home is one of the biggest purchases you will ever make. Yet, over and over again, we see first home buyers make the same mistakes along the way.

We want to help you get it right. So, here are the six biggest mistakes many first time home buyers make and you should avoid.

Mistake No. 1: Not Acting Fast

When you find your dream home, it’s also other people’s dream home.

You want to inspect, do your research and make an offer fast, so you don’t miss out.

Mistake No. 2: Not Getting A Pre-approval

How are you going to act fast if you don’t have your loan pre-approved? What happens if you win an auction and then you can’t get a home loan?

Having a pre-approval reduces your risk and makes buying a home far less stressful.

Mistake No. 3: Expect The Building Report To Freak You Out

Every property has some problems.

The building report is often scary, as the inspector is covering themselves legally.

However, if you go with the building inspector when they look at the property, they’ll explain what’s easily fixable and what’s a genuine problem.

Mistake No. 4: Buying Off The Plan

Buying off the plan is really risky, especially if you have a small deposit.

You’re committing now to buying a property in the future, but your situation may change or the value of the property may drop and then you may not be able to get a loan when it’s time to settle.

Mistake No. 5: Listening Too Much To The Media

Buying a home is scary. If you focus too much on the media then you’ll end up scaring yourself out of doing it.

There is always some risk in the economy and the housing market if you go looking for it.

Mistake No. 6: Buying Too Late In Life

Generally, houses have gone up in value over the long term. If you bought a house 10 years ago, you’re likely much better off than someone who buys a house today.

Buying a house earlier in life means you will have a smaller mortgage and may be able to retire earlier.

What Other Recent First Home Buyers Had To Say

We asked some of our recent first home buyers what big mistakes they made along the way.

There were a couple that stood out:

• Signing a contract they could not service.
• Incurring penalties because they couldn’t settle within the deadline on a house-and-land package, due to bank delays.

Both of these mistakes probably could have been avoided if the buyers had a pre-approval so they knew how much they could afford and understood how the banks operate.

Are You Ready To Buy Your First House?

Our mortgage brokers are credit Experts who can quickly assess your situation and work out the right home loan option for you.

Give us a call on 1300 889 743 or fill in our free online assessment form.